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LONDON—Los Angeles Rams owner
Stan Kroenke
is doubling down on Premier League soccer, agreeing to take full ownership of London’s storied Arsenal soccer team, in a deal that values the club at £1.8 billion ($2.3 billion.)
A completed transaction would bring to an end a protracted battle for full ownership between Mr. Kroenke and minority owner
Alisher Usmanov,
a Russian billionaire.
The deal would give Mr. Kroenke—whose company also owns the NBA’s Denver Nuggets, the NHL’s Colorado Avalanche and MLS’s Colorado Rapids—full control of a soccer team with broad international recognition. Arsenal is the world’s sixth-largest team by revenue, according to Deloitte.
The move would also expand the footprint of a handful of American owners active in English soccer.
and Liverpool, historically the country’s most successful soccer teams, are respectively owned by the Glazer family—which also owns the NFL’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers—and
John Henry’s
Fenway Sports Group, owner of the Boston Red Sox.
Arsenal’s crosstown rival Fulham is owned by the Jacksonville Jaguars’ Shad Khan, the billionaire who earlier this year offered to buy London’s Wembley Stadium, English soccer’s flagship arena. Americans also own stakes in Bournemouth, Crystal Palace and West Ham United.
Kroenke Sports and Entertainment, which already owns 67% of Arsenal, said Tuesday it offered to buy the 30% of the club held by Mr. Usmanov’s Red and White Securities. In its statement, KSE said it had received an “irrevocable undertaking” from Red and White accepting the offer. A representative for Red and White wasn’t immediately reachable for comment.
Completion of the transaction would move KSE above the 90% threshold at which it would need to offer to buy any remaining shares in the club held by other minority investors.
The move comes at a crossroads for Arsenal, which parted company with its coach of 22 years,
Arsène Wenger,
at the end of the last season. The team has slipped down the Premier League rankings in recent years, having failed to qualify for the UEFA Champions League—global soccer’s premier club competition—for the past two seasons. The team last won the Premier League championship in 2004.
Mr. Kroenke has been at times a lightning rod for criticism by Arsenal fans. Critics have blamed him for not investing enough in the club as its majority shareholder. Mr. Kroenke has over the years defended his strategy, insisting that his goal for the club is to win trophies.
KSE said Tuesday it believes a single owner will be “better able to move quickly in furtherance of the Club’s strategy and ambitions.”
—James Leigh contributed to this article
Write to Michael Wright at michael.wright@wsj.com
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